Helena Horton

6 days ago | theguardian.com | Helena Horton

They were hoping for a nice day out on the bay. Instead, dolphin-watching tourists in Wales were confronted with the shocking and grisly sight of four adult bottlenose dolphins pursuing and killing a common dolphin calf. The trip, in Cardigan Bay, was operated by Dolphin Spotting Boat Trips and the Sea Watch Foundation (SWF), a charity that monitors the dolphins in the bay to inform and advise on their conservation status and protection.

6 days ago | msn.com | Rajeev Syal |Helena Horton

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6 days ago | theguardian.com | Rajeev Syal |Helena Horton

Wildfires across the UK during hot, dry springs and summers have exposed a “postcode lottery” of firefighting resources that must be addressed, the head of the Fire Brigades Union has said. Steve Wright, the general secretary, said public safety was at risk, and called for a statutory body to ensure that each fire and rescue service had enough staff and appliances.

1 week ago | theguardian.com | Helena Horton

Britain’s rural communities could be “destroyed”, the former government food tsar has said, if ministers sign a US trade deal that undercuts British farming standards. Ministers are working on a new trade deal with the US, after previous post-Brexit attempts stalled. Unpopular agreements signed at the time with Australia and New Zealand featured tariff-free access to beef and lamb and were accused of undercutting UK farmers, who are governed by higher welfare standards than their counterparts.

1 week ago | theguardian.com | Helena Horton

Ancient and culturally important trees in England could be given legal protections under plans in a UK government-commissioned report. Sentencing guidelines would be changed under the plans so those who destroy important trees would face tougher criminal penalties. Additionally, a database of such trees would be drawn up, and they could be given automatic protections, with the current system of tree preservation orders strengthened to accommodate this.